My conscience called in sick
by Smirking Ferret
Summary: How to spend a night worse than being stuck down some trap - which was not intended for you - without maybe a single hope to get out one day ? Having your dearest enemy joining the party could be.
1. Chapter 1

Originally written to be an OS, here comes a six-chapters long little story. Already fully written, will be online as soon as I finish my OCD corrections.

Little warning : this is cuter than my last. Don't know if the category "humour" is legit though :/ you tell me.

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English still not my first language.

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Title from _I slept with someone in FOB and [...]_ by FOB

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 **.** **MY CONSCIENCE CALLED IN SICK**

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" _...recipes, restoring spells, repelling charms, revealers…_ "

The quiet voice of Hermione Granger was muttering out loud what her eyes were scanning on the shelves of the library.

It had always helped her finding more quickly what she was looking for - especially when the only light illuminating the room was the tip of her wand, and when her research was a little blurred out by the fabric of Harry's invisibility cloak standing between her eyes and the spines of the books.  
Obviously, the dictionary of ancient runes had been stored elsewhere that night.

 _Ok, next shelf._

She started over on the next one, walking as quietly as possible and wondering how this freaking book she knew so well could still avoid to be found.  
" _...reducting spells, room-sealing spells, rules and regulations, ru…"_

But suddenly, too fast for her brain to understand how, her body unexpectedly fell forward and all she could think of now was that sharp pain electrifying one of her wrists.

"Ouch !" she cringed, almost biting her tongue not to scream.

After a very long couple of seconds, she tried to move her wrist to give it a test, but something was probably dislocated in there. Great. Hermione fumbled around with her valid hand to find her wand that had rolled somewhere - turning off the only light - but when her fingers found it, her heart missed a beating.

Her wrist was not the only thing the fall had screwed. " _Oh no... no, no, no, no !"_ she whispered in horror as she picked up the pieces frantically.

 _Ok, Hermione. First, calm down. Breath._

She gave a look around to try to understand the situation. It really looked like she had fallen in some pit which depth was at least twice her height.  
How ?  
Since when Hogwart's library was filled with surprised holes any distracted student could fall into ?

More than accustomed to remain calm in such situations, Hermione let her eyes get used to the darkness of her trap. Her trap that was, fortunately, situated pretty close to one of the huge windows through which the silver glow of the moon was filtering.  
She had fallen in what looked like some kind of storing pit for obsolete books, and she would have shiver in wonder if only she hadn't notice at the same second that there wasn't any stairs or ladder left to get out.

 _Don't worry. There must be a way up._

But no ascending spell with that now shattered wand of her, and there were not enough books down there to craft homemade stairs.  
Panic started crawling between her ribs as she pictured herself found out by Filch on his early morning rounds. How many points from Gryffindor would be taken off for this ?

She got down on her knees, cursing herself for her stubborn need to find out that absurd rune her mind was sleepless about, and cursing Harry for letting her borrow the cloak, and cursing that freaking Mrs Pince that couldn't have closed her stupid pit, could she?  
Well, maybe the librarian needed to do some organizing within the books late at night, because of the upcoming holidays… But still.  
She started massaging her sprained wrist, her mind running full speed to find a solution.  
The key was not to panic. _There's always a solution, anyway._

She was breathing calmly when steps coming from the surface made her jump.

She froze in fright, but hope started flowing through her as she realized the steps were way too fast - and too feminine - to be Filch. The mysterious girl even happened to come right over the edge of the hole, and Hermione had already took a breath to scream for help when she choked herself as her eyes realized it was Pansy Parkinson.

 _Crap !_

She disappeared under the cloak half a second before the Slytherin girl leaned over the pit, and she blocked her breathing as Pansy's cold eyes searched the bottom of the cavity.  
Had she heard something ? What was she looking for ?  
What was she even doing there ?

But a few minutes later, other footsteps appeared somewhere in the library, and Parkinson turned over to give the newcomer a bright smile.  
Hermione bit her lips when she realized who it was. Seriously ?  
Could this night get any more complicated ?

"Draco" Parkinson whispered , her crystal-clear voice as soft as usual.

 _Yeah, right, these two annoying kids are together. Awesome._

Hermione held a heavy sigh as the boy leaned over to give Pansy a kiss, and slipped his hands in his pocket with his unbearable nonchalant attitude.

"Why the hell did you want to meet here, by the way ?" Malfoy asked, his suspicious look glancing everywhere.

"I don't know" she said smoothly "I wasn't really feeling like meeting in the common room, with everyone around, you know…."

"Yeah I get that, but why the library ?" he asked, still on his guard.

"Isn't scary the new romantic ?" she muttered, getting closer to him.

If he was about to answer back, he didn't, for Pansy's hands grab the collar of his shirt and dragged him to her in a kiss Hermione would have given anything not to witness. She closed her eyes, praying all the gods she would not be forced to witness _more_.  
The languid kiss became a strange hug, in which Pansy turned Draco over so his back faced Hermione, and for a second the girl feared they would both fall into the pit the way she did.

But Parkinson suddenly backed off, aiming at Malfoy what obviously was his own wand she had just stolen away.

The boy froze, astounded, and asked very calmly as he raised both his hands in surrender.  
"Well... what the fuck ?"

"Do I look that stupid, Malfoy ?" she hissed with quiet fury, her teeth glowing in the darkness of the room.

"Of course, asking you why would be useless ?" he drawled, trying his best not to let any worry echo in his voice.

"Answer me : do I look that stupid ?"

"You don't look stupid at all, Pans'."

She took a step forward, her wand almost touching his chest.  
"Oh, even better ! That was pure purpose, then, right ? Just to humiliate me ? Great !" she almost cried out, and Malfoy clenched his jaw, trying to calm her down.

"Please, don't get carried away, sweetheart. Not here." He tried to reach for her shoulder but she pushed away his hand with an irascible gesture, her voice back to pure ice.

"Don't you dare touching me."

He backed off and stood still for a second, probably hoping she had calm down, but before he could ask anything she started again. "You're the worst, you know that ?"

"I don't really…"

"You're the worst and unfortunately for you, I'm not really forgiving" Pansy murmured with a joyless smile, lowering the wand as she took a step back.

And she gave him, right in the chest, the greatest kick Hermione had ever witness.

Malfoy fell backward in what really reminded Hermione of a muggle movie scene, and she would have burst out into a cheerful and mocking laughter if only the boy was not falling _right onto her_.  
She got just enough time to stick against the wall - holding her breath under Harry's cloak - before the boy hit the ground.

Draco Malfoy fell on both his feet without making a single sound, for he was probably pretty used to such altercations. Or for he was just skilled.

"What. The. Actual. Fuck..." his voice grunted in growing rage as he looked up at Pansy, who leaned over the edge of the pit with a huge, satisfied grin. His left hand was pressed against his obviously aching sternum, and he seemed to have trouble getting his breathing back.

The Slytherin girl gave him the brightest smile, her voice a sweet melody. "Have a good night, love of my life. I hope you choke in your nightmares."

And she just walked away.

"Pans' ! Come back !" he started, fright slowly altering his voice. "Pansy ! I'm sorry, okay ? I really am ! Come back !"

He was almost yelling when she appeared again, still smiling. She purred with a silken voice. "Please, don't get carried away, sweetheart. Not here."

And as he was petrified in outrage, she waved her wand above the pit along with two spells he probably didn't know. But Hermione did, and she almost gave away her position with a gasp just before Parkinson definitely took off.

 _Fuck !_

Hermione Granger was now stuck in not only a silenced and hidden dark pit but along with a humiliated - and therefore furious - Draco Malfoy.

Best night ever, right ?

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Chapter 1/6


	2. Chapter 2

" _...that fucking bitch… doesn't realize what she'd just done… that slut... not forgiving, right?... gonna see who's not forgiving… crazy cunt..._ "

For the past ten minutes, Draco Malfoy had been pacing around the small book-storing pit, muttering his anger out as he was looking for a way out of his trap.

But there was none.

Hermione Granger, for her part, was busy pacing along with the enraged boy so he would not bump into her invisible self - and therefore probably freak out.

Malfoy suddenly stopped and dropped on the ground, sitting. He let out the most hopeless sigh.

" _Good job, Draco. No really, good job…"_ he mumbled for himself, closing his eyes as he leaned his head against the wall, resigned.

Hermione looked at him with what could have been pity. He really wasn't any close to the arrogant git he usually was, being on his own like this, and that was somehow relieving.  
And pleasant.  
The corner of her mouth curled a little, for she surprised herself thinking that he could even have been _cute,_ looking that desperate.

"Who's there ?!"

Hermione froze, mentally cursing herself as Malfoy got up on his feet, alert. Of course, breathing normally around someone that wasn't making any sound anymore would be a giveaway. _Moron !  
_ She hold her breath and started to step back as he was slowly coming toward her, trying to look threatening. But he looked just as terrified as she was.

"I do hear you, whoever you are…" his eyes searched the room frantically as he kept speaking. "Don't try to play me, I'm not in the best mood right now."

Her mind came out with the craziest idea, but having no other choice, she just followed along.  
"Making threats while wandless ? Not very wise, young wizard" she whispered with a voice she tried to make sound deeper.  
And Malfoy's reaction told her it sounded convincing.

"Who are you ?" he asked, almost taking a step back. "And how long have you been here with me ?"

"Since you got kicked down by that nice girlfriend of yours" Hermione answered, almost feeling a sadistic pleasure in her trick.

He frowned. "And you're not gonna tell me who you are, I guess…" he tried again with irritation.

"I'm indeed not telling you things you don't need to know."

"Great…"

Malfoy sat back where he had before, and took a deep breath that really sounded like an irritate sigh. "One thing I need to know, however : how do I get out of here ?"

"I don't know" she answered after a few seconds, with a voice that sounded maybe too much like hers.

"Ok, you're probably not a ghost since you look as stuck here as I am" he murmured in a slight smile. "Who did kick you down ?"

"No one. I'm very skilled at getting into trouble all by myself" she almost giggled. But she immediately pulled herself together and added, her voice sharper "What does not mean that I'm not skilled at finding a way out."

"Yet it pretty looks like it."

"I said I don't know how _you_ could get out. Didn't say a word about myself."

"Show me then. Not quite being in a rush right now, I'd be delighted to witness that."  
His lips were curved into that smirk she knew too well, that unbearable smirk she'd hated all those years. He was such a prick !  
Gods, she could have punched him right in the face, _again_.

"Okay then, good luck on your own" she uttered, and she hold back her breathing to make it look like she had disappeared.  
Childish maybe, but yeah, screw him.

A heavy silence sat through them for a while, only softened by the smooth and regular expirations of Draco Malfoy.

After a short eternity, he murmured, smirking. "Whether you have been or still are a human, you can be nothing but a Gryffindor."  
Hermione summoned all of her energy and concentration not to answer to this. He added, quite amused "and I'm pretty sure I still hear you breathing, touchy friend."

She lowered her breathing as much as she could, but the silence was too deep for her to stay totally hidden. He got up on his feet and started walking slowly toward the exact spot where she was standing. She wanted to take a step aside, but making such a noise would have been a giveaway, so she just waited as Malfoy stopped - fortunately ! - a step away.

"I know you are here, fake ghost" he whispered, his eyes scanning almost exactly where her face was standing. "I may be wandless but that doesn't make me any stupid. And I still have all of my five senses." He stopped for a second before adding. "Well, four senses, considering the context. That perfect invisibility of yours is a source of wonder."

"Back off" she just growled, sharp. And he did, probably not certain he wasn't facing some kind of threat.

He laughed a little before saying, his smile back. "You're _so_ stuck here too, new friend of mine."

"The last thing I'll be is a friend of yours, arrogant prick" Hermione spat as she was trying to be threatening.

"Come on, we're both to be here until probably tomorrow morning" he said softly. "Tell me at least what you are."

For a second she hesitated. _Improvise.  
_ "I'm a spell, little wizard. I'm a spell that was enacted to keep an eye on this little storing pit, and I'm not the very patient kind" she concluded, trying to sound as convincing as possible.

Malfoy's eyes narrowed. "A talking spell ? Yeah, totally makes sense..." he considered quite ironically, before adding. "So I can guess you're pretty bodiless, too?"

"Good guess" she replied simply, sounding as dismissive as she could.

"How come do you need to breath, then ?"

That smirk. He was trying to play her, she knew it. But on that field she was just as good as him.

"Maybe because I use air to speak, smartass" she smirked back.

She couldn't tell if that was convincing or if that just shut him up, but the boy frowned, not daring any word for a few minutes.

And here they were, just the two of them standing face to face, working on how they could piss off each other in the subtlest way. Almost a usual evening, when you think about it.

Eventually, Malfoy's voice raised again. "Tell me, dear Gryffindorish protection spell of the library" he started, his evil mouth curling along. "If your job is indeed to protect the place, then how did I get down here perfectly unarmed?"

"Because you've done nothing to the books, wizard" she improvised, really hoping he wouldn't request her to prove anything. But obviously, that was too much to hope for.  
After quickly looking around, his hand in his pockets, the boy gave a sharp kick to a pile of old books that was laying on the ground. "Done."

Hermione's heart tightened in anger.

"You asked for it, bastard !" she snapped as she stepped forward, trying to push him away by hitting his chest with her hands.

But Malfoy was faster.

He caught her by the shoulders with both his hands and held her still with an unexpected strength.

"Looking pretty human-shaped to me, _protection spell_ " he murmured as his eyes narrowed again. Hermione stood perfectly still, petrified, wondering how she could hope to get away this time.

He started to slide his hands down her arms, whispering softly. "How did you manage to get that perfectly invisible ? That's insane."  
As she didn't answer, he pulled her a little closer to him. So close she could almost feel his warm breathing lightly brushing the skin of her forehead.

"Come on, invisible girl, don't be shy" he whispered, his eyes still scanning the empty space in front of him. "Where is your face ?"

His fingers went fumbling up along her arms, her shoulders, her neck. She thanked all the gods for the cloak being so heavy that it straightened her giveaway curls as Malfoy's hands cupped her head.  
She stood here, absolutely petrified, as the boy she despised the most got her face between his slender hands, his smile being dreadfully daunting.

But he suddenly backed off, letting go of her as if he got deeply burnt. And his eyes grew wide in umbrage.

"You… !" he started.

The cheesy, sugar-coated boy had vanished in the blink of an eye, replaced by an ireful and disgusted Draco Malfoy. He wiped his hands on his pants as if they were dirty, and he walked back until his back bumped against the other side of the pit.

"Being dipped in shit all by myself would have been too much to ask for, right ?" he spat out, furious. "What kind of _radar_ do you have, seriously ? How are you so talented that you're able to fuck with me even when I'm stuck down a goddamn trap in the middle of the night ?!"

Hermione frowned, not quite sure she was understanding this turnaround. Or anything that was happening.

"What do you…" she started, her voice rough, but he cut her off with an impatient gesture. His eyes were pinned exactly where she was standing, and he uttered, dismissive.

"Don't you even try. I already know it's you, Granger."


	3. Chapter 3

What could be worse than being stuck down a dark pit during the night - within a place you're not allowed in - with both your wrist and your wand screwed up, along with a despicable, mute boy that hates you as much as you hate him?

Nothing, really.

Even if it had started to rain inside, things could not get worse, Hermione thought.

Well, maybe being hung upside down by only one foot would have. While completely naked. And get her picture taken by a giggling Malfoy that would happen to have a camera.  
Well, yeah, okay, things _could have been_ worse, in a way. She rolled her eyes. Except for her optimistic brain's trials to look on the bright side, she was still _dipped into shit._

How long had it been since Malfoy had found her out ? Ten minutes ? Thirty ? Almost an hour ?  
Not a word had been spoken ever since, and both of them were sitting on opposite corners of the small room. Even when she decided to take the cloak off, moments before - because, well, breathing under there was quite tiring - the boy did not deign to react.

Apparently, having been witnessed by a Gryffindor while getting - unkindly - dumped by his girlfriend was the worst thing that could have happened to him, ever. Especially by that one Gryffindor girl.

And that heavy, hateful muteness was so much harsher than any of his sarcasms, Hermione almost sighed in relief when he finally broke the silence.

"Could you _please_ breath a little quieter, Granger ?" he hissed.

"And why would I ?" she hissed back, hiding her alleviation.

"Oh, I don't know, maybe because we wouldn't want your disgusting body sounds to lure Filch here ?"

She chuckled. "You really are not the best in spells, right ?"

He raised an eyebrow, scornful. He obviously did not get that.  
"I wonder if you're at least making sense in your own head. Not that I give a damn..."

Hermione sighed. Draco really had no idea Pansy had hexed their trap with both a silencing _and_ an illusion spell - that was making the pit look just like some average floor from up there. Filch would definitely not get lured by any noise, nor would he find them in his morning round.

But the question was, who would ?

At the thought that Harry didn't have the Map anymore, a sneaky anguish started crawling under Hermione's ribs. Almost without realizing, she let out in a whisper. "What if no one ever finds us ?"

"And I'm supposed to be the stupid one ?"  
Malfoy chuckled. "We're in the middle of the fucking library, _smartestass._ And besides, I told Blaise I'd come here, he'll come to pull me out in the morning for sure." He added, smirking, "However for you, I don't know."

Sighing again, she told him about Pansy's spells just to shut him up. Which worked.  
He got up on his feet with obvious terror.

"What ?! You're kidding, right ?"

"Yeah, of course, since I've got nothing better to do" she replied, rolling her eyes.

God knows why he trusted her this time.

" _That cunt..._ " he muttered for himself, starting again to pace around the pit as if a way out would have appeared since.

She looked at him for a few seconds, biting her lip while her mind ran full speed to scan every option. "At least, Pansy knows you're here" she tried, making him stop pacing to give her a tired look.

"Your deductive skills are beyond measure."

Deciding to ignore this - as hard as it was - she continued. "She can't let you rot in here until the end of days."

He chuckled with a joyless smile. "Oh, my dear Gryffindorish-gullible cell mate, you really don't know Pansy." And he sat back where he had before, letting his head rest against the wall, again.

He looked so hopeless Hermione bit the inside of her cheek.

"What have you done to her…" she whispered, not really asking for an answer.

"None of your pathetic business."

"How can you hurt a girl so deeply she'd become able to wish you dead ?" she continued, ignoring his angry stare commanding her to shut up. "What kind of person are you ?"

Again, he got up on his feet, furious, and at Hermione's surprise he actually started to justify himself.

"I was bored, okay ? I've had enough of her and her absolute control freak bullshit ! Her _perfect relationship plan._ " He ran a hand through his ash-grey hair. "I can stand getting hurt, or stressed out. I could even survive being cheated on, like, really. But if there's one thing I cannot handle within a relationship, it definitely is being bored. And..." He sighed. "Pansy is nothing but boredom."

He stopped, suddenly looking away as he sighed once more. "Why do I even tell you this."

But Hermione got up on her feet too, taking a step toward him. "And what did you do ? How did you… what got her that mad ?" she asked as softly as possible, really afraid he would snap again. God knows why she suddenly got interested in that despicable boy's life that night.  
He looked at her with despise, but he didn't snap. And after a deep, guilty breath, he even did answer.

"…I may have spend a night or two with Daphne..."

Hermione bit her lip at that. Deeply. She started feeling Pansy's anger crawling inside her flesh as if it was her own. How could someone do that to his beloved one ? To anyone ? With her own best friend ? _Several times_?  
How could the earth handle such a heartless bastard ? Without thinking, her hand went flying to give that very bastard a huge slap.

But again, Malfoy was faster.

He caught her mid-movement, and an intense pain exploded inside her wrist where his fingers had clawed.  
"Aaah…!" she cried out with urgency. "Let go of me ! Let me go !"

But struggling was only increasing the pain. And Malfoy did not let go, looking down at her with indignation.

"You actually tried to hit me ?" he asked with a calm shock, tightening his grip.

"You're hurting me ! Get off, let me go !"

"Gryffindor are such pussies…" he spat.  
And he tightened his grip even more.

"My wrist is broken" she finally cried out, almost feeling tears wetting her eyes. "You hurt me ! Stop !"

That may not have been totally true, but that surprisingly worked. The shocked boy let go of her immediately - even slightly backing off. "Oh sorry I… it was not meant to… I was… I did not... but you tried to hit me !"

"Yes I did" she growled back, massaging her injury after quickly wiping away her tears. God, the pain was dreadful. "Because what you did to Pansy was outrageous !"

"Oh yeah ? Because Pansy's your friend now, of course."

"Friend of mine or not that's not the point ! Betraying someone who trusts you with her heart is as despicable as…" she stopped for a second. "Wait…"

Meeting his surprisingly regretful grey eyes, she asked slowly. "...did you actually apologize to me ?"

He frowned before a smirk made its way across his lips. "You wish, Granger."

"I'm absolutely positive you did !" she let out with half a smile.

"Your tiny wrist must not be the only thing that's broken, girl" he chuckled. "If I were you I'd go ask for a mental checkup at the hospital wing once we're…"

... _out._

A heavy silence abruptly fell between them.

Having the one Draco Malfoy not being able to finish that sentence suddenly made it all real. They were stuck down here, and God knew for how long. God knew if it wasn't even _forever._

"What if no one ever finds us" she whispered once again, her eyes suddenly clouding.

She let go of her sprained wrist and brought her valid hand on her face. To hide it. To hide from the realization that, maybe, this was as bad as it seemed.

"Come on, you really want to be the stupid one tonight ? Don't start with such nonsense" Malfoy drawled, but the trouble in his voice was crystal-clear.

As she didn't answer, her hand still resting on her face, he took a step toward her and added "there is no spell that lasts forever, you know it better than anyone. Don't act desperate, Granger."

"I know that, but we don't need _forever_ to die of thirst or hunger. And that kind of spell can easily last half a year."

He paused for a second, looking around, before trying again. "This illusion spell doesn't make an actual ground. We're in the library, someone will eventually fall down too and he'll have his wand."

"The trap had been set in the Runes and Forgotten spells section for a reason, Malfoy" she muttered, taking her hand off her face to look at him. "No one ever comes here but me, not to mention that tomorrow begins the Christmas Holiday."

"The Holiday ?" he asked, stunned. "Tomorrow is… wow, I didn't pay attention at what day it was…"

"Like you've ever paid attention to anything…" she sighed, and before he could protest, she added. "Pansy really worked on this. Looks like she meant to leave nothing to chance. We're doomed down here. We're…"

She felt her knees get weak, and all of a sudden she wanted to burst into tears. She almost jumped when Malfoy's hands caught her by the shoulders.

"Hey, don't panic, ok ? We're not dying here, come on" he tried to chuckle a little, which was almost convincing. "We cannot _die_ here, that's nonsense. Something will eventually occur and everything will be okay. You're just having some kind of... panic attack."

His eyes looked so concerned, so sweet at that moment that Hermione surprised herself actually feeling relieved. It even brought a shy smile on her face.

"Yeah… I guess" she just whispered. And he let go of her almost immediately, trying to get back to his nonchalant attitude.

"Well, good… If you're not freaking out anymore, I mean. You were giving me chills."

And as he got back to sit down on his now favorite spot of the pit, she smiled again for she was thinking that even though the situation was kind of desperate, not being alone was somehow heartwarming. Even if her cell mate was Draco Malfoy.

Even that way.


	4. Chapter 4

Rolling over for the hundredth time, Hermione mentally cursed her painful wrist for keeping her awake. And that ground that was way too hard. And the temperature that was awfully too low.  
No kidding… she was down a pit in the library of a castle, mid-night, at the end of december. _What would you expect_?

If only Harry's cloak could have been of any help. But the powerful magic impregnating the textile was somehow making it ice cold, and even rolled as a pillow it was colder than the floor itself. No use.

Hermione was dead tired, and unable to sleep. Which was making her really prickly.  
She felt her jaw clenching at the sound of Malfoy's breathing, that he obviously was making as loud as possible to annoy the hell out of her.

"Could you _please_ breath a little quieter ?" she hissed to him with the same dismissive tone he had used earlier.

But she got no answer.

She rolled her eyes, getting really upset when the boy started to sound almost like he had asthma. And she would have swore she even heard him _moan.  
_ What kind of comedy was that ?  
Hermione raised her head to take a look at the lying body of Draco, so upset she felt herself ready to throw at him one of the precious books surrounding her.

But her anger vanished as she saw him twitching on the ground, in a way that didn't look like a comedy at all. She almost gasped at the thought that he might start to convulse, and got up eagerly.

"Hey… are you ok ?" she whispered softly, coming closer in quiet steps.

But he seemed deeply asleep, lying on his side, eyebrows frowned and hands clawed at his stomach as if something was eating him from the inside. And she jumped when he started to gasp for air again.

 _\- I hope you choke in your nightmares -_

Hermione's heart tightened. If Pansy had wished him such a thing, it had to be because the boy was pretty used to those kind of rough night. Maybe… maybe he was even experiencing it through every single sleep.  
How could normal people survive such hell ?

She risked a shy hand on his forehead, and as expected, he was ice cold.

"What can I do for you…?" she whispered too low to be heard, her voice almost breaking.

God, how she hated to see someone in pain. Even that one.  
She tried to wake him up by shaking him a little, but there was nothing to be done. And she felt pity, and sorrow, and a feeling of helplessness so strong she did something she never had imagined she would do one day.

Her chest against his back, Hermione lied down against Draco's body to warm him up.

She even put an arm - her valid-wrist one - around him to bring him closer, to try to sooth a little his awful shivers that would eventually drain all of his energy. To try to bring him rest.

And when he frantically caught her hand in his own, clawing at it with so much strength it was painful, she didn't even make a move to back out.

"I'm sorry… I'm so sorry… that was not… I did not meant to… I'm sorry…" he started muttering, his voice so low she wasn't even sure what she was hearing.

"Sorry about what ?" she asked softly.

But he was sleep talking.

"Sorry... so sorry... sorry..." he kept muttering in a sorrowful loop, and he held her hand tighter and tighter, and she felt so heartbroken she rested her forehead against his silken blond hair.

"Don't be" she just whispered.

And she closed her eyes, letting the soft warmth of his body heat her own, the twitches of his shattered breathing rock her to sleep, and his voice, just his voice.

Just him.

And that velvet, cotton-soft silence that wrapped her whole.

Whole.

To sleep.

.

.

.

"Uh, well… what the fuck ?"

Hermione woke up startled, her eyes widening in fear. She hadn't noticed her hand was not held anymore, nor that the body of the boy she was pressed against had stopped shivering and sleep talking.  
Well, the body she _had been_ pressed against - that very boy having rolled over to look at her eyes with suspicion.

"I…"

But she just couldn't explain. So she backed off instead, with a murmured apology, and got back to her side of the pit to lie down face against the wall.

"You're one weird girl, aren't you ?" she heard his cold voice mumble, probably not expecting an answer. An answer she did not give anyway.

She heard him roll over against his wall, sighing. But after a few seconds he rolled back and his voice raised again.

"No but seriously, what the fuck ?"

 _Because you were moaning like a little girl and I felt sorry !_

"I was just cold…"

"Oh yeah, right. Ok. Glad to be your heat provider then" he drawled, rolling over again. "Anytime."

"Fuck you" she whispered, too low for him to hear. And she bit her lip so hard that she decided the pain was the reason her eyes suddenly filled with tears.

 _Prick…_

 _._

 _._

For what probably was half an hour, the boy on the other side of the room rolled over a thousand times, obviously struggling to fall asleep again. She was herself shivering cold.  
But listening to his breathing that was calm and regular again, she felt kind of relieved. The bastard was at least not choking to death, and - in spite of herself - she did prefer it that way.

"Hey…"

Hermione did not believe her ears when Malfoy's voice had raised in a whisper. And she did not answer.

"Come on, I know you're not sleeping…"

"What do you want ?" she uttered, her voice a bit too sharp.

"Don't get upset, I just wanted to…"

"Wanted to what ?"

"I wanted to know if…"

She rolled around to meet his eyes. His eyes that were - from the other side of the pit - staring at her with a strange shyness. His grey eyes that were almost glowing silver under the moonlight touching his face.

Every single drop her anger drained at that image.

And he took a deep, timid breath.

"... are you still cold, Granger ?"


	5. Chapter 5

"Is it ok if I… ?"

"Yeah, don't worry, go on" she answered, and he rested his arm around her waist almost with awkwardness.  
Since she had lied down against Draco, her back against his warm chest, seconds had been hours down their dark trap.

Awkward but delightful hours.

He did not change his mind, had made no move to push her away, nor did he let out any hurtful comment since. He just lied there, behind her, breathing with an unexpected serenity.

"That doesn't mean that any…"

"I know" she cut him off in a whisper. "We're just preventing each other from dying of cold."

"Yeah, exactly" she heard him answer, and the slight smile in his voice made her smile too.

She had rolled her hair into a side bun she kind of used as a pillow - to prevent him from choking in her curls - and her spine lied so close to his torso that she could feel the rise and fall of his calm breathing. He even had flexed his knees to match the shape of her legs, and his hips were pressed against her… Well.  
Heat providing. Pure heat providing.

"What gave me away ?"

After hours-long, peaceful seconds she finally had dared the question she was dying to ask him.

"When ?" he just asked.

"Earlier, when I was invisible. You got your hands around my head and... suddenly you just happened to know it was me."

He answered without a hesitation.

"Your perfume."

"My... ?" she started, not understanding.

"That licorice-mint-something unmistakable scent you wear like, everyday." She actually felt the smirk in his voice when he added. "It's such a giveaway, you should probably not wear it on your invisible nights out."

"I don't wear any perfume, Malfoy. I never have."

He paused for a second, astounded, before retorting.

"Don't try to play me." He frowned. "I can even smell it right now, you…"

But at the second his nose brushed against the sensitive skin of her neck, Hermione's whole body shivered in a way that made both their hearts pound.

He backed off slightly, embarrassed, and she almost moaned at the loss of his warmth against her. _Sorry,_ he probably wanted to whisper. And he withdrew his arm from around her waist, and she repressed a urge to hold it back.

She wanted to confront him, to ask him so many question on how she could smell like mint and stuff while not wearing any perfume. And since how long had he noticed that about her ? Since when was he paying any attention to anything, especially to people's scent ?  
That made no sense.

She sighed in helplessness.  
Was it really her scent ? Licorice and mint ?  
No one had ever noticed it before…

"I'm cold again" she whispered in the heavy silence.

And he just pressed against her back again, without a word. Without his arm curling around her waist although she was dying for it.

But maybe it was time to stop waiting for things to happen.

Letting her arm go searching backward, she found his hand and grabbed it between her fingers. It was so ice cold she clenched her teeth softly.  
And before he could utter anything stupid, Hermione brought back his hand around her waist, shoving it _under_ her jumper to rest against the skin of her stomach.

"… really ?"

Draco's voice was a stunned whisper.

"You don't want your hand to get amputated because it died of cold, do you ?"

"No… I don't."

And he did not dare a further word.

And hours just passed.

.

.

.

Hermione Granger was stuck down a hexed trap that was not meant to her, in the middle of a cold night of december, without maybe a single hope to get out one day.  
She was lying on a cold, centuries-old, rock hard ground and her right wrist had even swelled a little because of the injury she had got from a quite dangerous fall. She was tired, and sore.  
But none of those things had a place in her mind at that moment.

Not a single one.

All she had been thinking of for the past seconds - minutes, hours, eternity - was the slight, regular brushing of Draco Malfoy's fingers against the skin of her stomach. The warmth of his serene breath touching the skin of her neck, the slight pressure of his forehead resting against the back of her head. The weight of his arm around her waist that was so comforting, the soft rise and fall of his chest along her spine.

And those brushing fingers that were slowly heading upward, upward. One inch per hour maybe, disguised as an innocent motion due to his breathing, but definitely heading upward. Upward. And he was probably thinking she was asleep.

But she was not.

When the tips of Draco's finger reached the base of one of her breast, she summoned all of her nerve not to shiver under the slight touch. Especially because she was always braless under her _night-outs_ jumper. Or especially because he started sketching the contours of that very base with the same soft, warm touch he had been for the past eternity.

 _You're asleep. You're asleep._

She almost bit the inside of her cheek to blood when she felt his mouth on her neck, brushing along with the same gentleness his fingers did, kissing so softly it felt like warm air.  
And lava started flowing from inside her ribcage down her guts when he softly licked her sensitive skin, whispering in a delighted smile "you even taste like it…"

 _Licorice-mint-something_.

And he cupped her breast gently, his thumb never stopping its slight brushing, and his kisses left delightful burns marks on the skin up her neck, along her hairline, around her ear.  
She was all burns and contained shocks and repressed shivers as he kept going, and she was just letting him keep going, without making a single sound or move, and letting him keep going, ahead and ahead, and suddenly his hand left her breasts to try to slip inside her jeans.

Hermione made the greatest jump onward a lying down person could imagine making.

She turned to him, half up on her knees, an avoided heart-attack disguised as fury in her burning eyes.

"What do you think you're doing... ?" she asked after a second, her voice curved into a fake offence. Her heart was pounding so fast she was afraid he could hear it.

"I… okay, well, I did loose my temper. My bad" he stammered, raising both his hands in surrender.

And she narrowed her eyes to grunt with despise.

"Don't you ever try to take advantage of a girl who is asleep" she uttered.

"But… you were not."

And she opened her mouth in outrage to spat out denial. To shut up such impudence. How could he dare such impudence ? But words weren't making it past her lips because he was so right and it was so true, and she couldn't find anything to say because assuming was way too hard. Unthinkable. And here he was right in front of her, so lost, wanting her with such an obvious twinkle in his eyes, but how could she…

"You think way too much…" he murmured in a sad shake of his head.

The almost pitiful sigh he let out right after offended her, and by pure wounded pride her hand went flying to shut the bastard up. Again. But obviously he was way faster, again, and obviously he caught her mid-movement again, and while he let out in a tired smirk "at least that's your valid-one this time" he dragged her to him before she could react or get mad or even think and the kiss he gave her, grabbing her neck with that avid gentleness, the kiss she received just shut down her mind.

Finally.

And without thinking she closed her eyes. Without thinking she let her hands grab hold to his shirt in similar avidness.

No thought crossed her mind when she opened her lips to that soft, warm tongue pressing against them. And nor when those slender hands caught her waist and brought her closer, closest to him.

Her mind was empty as she gave herself away to that boy she had thought she hated, that boy whose hands slowly took off her vesture, slowly lied her down on the cold, centuries-old, rock hard ground of their dark trap. Of their hidden and timeless shelter.

And her mind stayed empty until the end, until he wrapped his arms around her shivering body, her serene, sated soul. And "thank you, _protection spell_ " he was whispering in her ear he kissed one last time, and he lied his forehead against her curly hair, and "thank you" before he probably fell asleep in total wholeness.

And her mind was still empty as she fell asleep too.

* * *

 _ **A/N : Chapter 5/6 guys ! The last one is coming tomorrow. Sorry for all the waiting.**_

 _ **Hope you did not find this one too cheesy. I kind of did.**_


	6. Final

"Finite incantatem."

The dark-haired head of Theodore Nott leaned over the now-visible pit in a satisfied gaze, and his dark-blue eyes narrowed as he found who he had been looking for in the bottom of the cavity.

"Ahem… well."

After half a second of thinking, the short boy searched his pockets for a piece of paper he then crumpled up into a fist-sized ball, and threw it on the intertwined couple that was sleeping down the pit.

Both the lovers startled awake and backed off from each other in a frantic jump. And both of them gave him a lost, sleepy, astounded look he just answered with a sympathetic nod.

 _Morning, lovebirds._

Good thing they were still - or already - dressed up. Things would have gotten _really awkward_ otherwise.  
Nott smiled at the idea.

He then turned around and yelled across the library. "Ok guys, I think I found them."

And before any of Draco or Hermione could utter a word, noisy steps came running toward the pit and Potter and Weasley appeared over the edge with faces of panic.

"Hermione ! Are you ok ? Oh my god ! What happened to your wand ?" and "How come you ended up down there with him ?" and "What did cross my mind to let you come in here all alone !" and "I'm not letting you borrow the cloak anymore, that's for sure" and their voices were just confused and angry stammerings and they were just up there waving their arms when the ladder Nott brought fell into the pit to allow the two captives to finally get out.

And as the Gryffindors reunion was all kisses and relieved words and warm hugs, the Slytherin saviour got a polite and discreetly thankful nod from his roommate.

"How did you find me ?" asked Draco after a short while, as Nott gave him a cup of wiggenweld.

"Blaise told me you had come here."

"Yeah ok but... the hiding spell and everything ?"

"I've helped Mrs Pince store some old books down there with Pansy yesterday and well" Nott made a slight movement with his head toward a spot behind him "with its door still lying over there, I found odd the pit looked closed today." He yawned. "And, yeah, you + an angry Pansy + the library at night, I'm not that bad at maths."

Draco nodded with a wry smile, probably not feeling like giving further details. He added as he emptied the cup. "Can you imagine I actually thought I would rot down there until the end of days ? Sounds so stupid now."

"I imagine desperate time calls for desperate measures" Theo answered with a shrug of his shoulders, slowly heading toward the exit of the library.

Malfoy immediately replied, frowning. "We were just keeping each other from dying of cold because..."

"I did not ask."

And Malfoy did not add a single word. And Nott pretended not to notice the quick, guilty glance he just took backward.

And the two of them simply left the library, closing the door on a unbearably noisy Golden Trio and memories that, well, would never be spoken of again.

.

.

 **. MY CONSCIENCE CALLED IN SICK**

* * *

.

. _**And here it ends. Hope you enjoyed it, even with that Nott-point-of-view last part that came a little out of nowhere (but which I liked writing, I love this jaded character so much.)**_

 ** _._**

 ** _. See you soon for a new story !_**


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